“In no way did I feel physically threatened at any time,” she wrote. “Over the course of our relationship together, I have never been verbally or physically threatened by Chris Rainey. What happened [Thursday] is a misunderstanding and should not affect his future in any way.”

Rainey stands accused of slapping his girlfriend after an argument broke out over a cell phone. A witness told Gainesville police that Rainey pulled her out of a car and slapped her before he chased after her and both parties fell to the ground.

Johnson related to the court that the victim “was adamant there was no crime committed” and said the police report indicated there were no marks on her person, which would likely occur after an open slap to the face.

“Johnson said the family specifically asked the judge not to impose a no-contact provision in his release decision,” according to the paper. Nevertheless, the judge did impose that provision and also ruled that Rainey cannot possess any weapons or firearms until his court date before releasing him on his own recognizance.

Also coming to light Friday is a statement from “Heather M,” a neighbor who sent an e-mail to Deadspin.com claiming that Rainey has been falsely accused and that the Gainesville Police Department refused to accept her sworn statement.

“The girl with whom he was arguing was telling the police officers the truth about what happened,” she wrote. “I contacted GPD and asked to file a report on what actually happened. I was treated like a criminal, despite being a straight A student and never having even a little trouble with the law. I was accused of lying.”

She continued, “I think it is also worth noting that the person who called 911 was a neighbor who openly dislikes Chris and his roommate and wanders the neighborhood asking if she can have our passwords for our internet instead of buying her own.”

6 Responses to “Victim, witness claim Rainey innocent of battery”

Dan, I think the point was that the ‘witness’ had a grudge to bear against the parties involved. As much as the alleged victims statement is or is not cedible, the lack of physical evidence is sigificant. A slap across the face leaves marks for a substantial time….

Well.. UPD/GPD is comprised over zealous jerks. If they get called then they are arresting someone. That is completely from firsthand experience with no factual information to back it up. Also, Internet stealers are the worst.

This is one of those crimes where anyone arrested for it is assumed to be guilty. And, when it comes down to it, the responsibility of the police is to arrest someone for something anytime there’s any defensible reason to arrest someone. You got one witness claiming violence by a man against a woman in public? Done. He’s going to jail.

But if it comes down to one witness’s word against another witness and the alleged “victim”, then I think everyone needs to suspend judgment. Including the so called “justice system”.

Unfortunately, these days, our society believes that folks are guilty until proven innocent. Case in point, Chris has already lost his job. Even though NOTHING has been proven.

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